Early WrestleMania 28 Predictions – Inside The Wheelhouse

In my eyes the road to WrestleMania 28 has unofficially began already with the Survivor Series PPV a couple weeks ago which saw the first physicality between The Rock & John Cena since WrestleMania 27. The moment leads us to a build up for the next couple of months towards WrestleMania 28 and with that I believe we have seen the seeds planted for other WrestleMania 28 matches. With that being said let’s take a look at my early WrestleMania 28 predictions as of December 2011:

The Rock vs. John Cena (confirmed)

Nothing to discuss here as it’s official; it’s a dream match that still needs a good build the next couple of months to give us something we really want to see come WrestleMania Sunday. 10 years ago they gave us The Rock vs. Hulk Hogan at WrestleMania 18 and similar to Rock/Cena it was a dream match fans wanted to see. The only exception is that build was six weeks and not 12 months, I wonder if the WWE can give fans that same feeling we all got back when Hogan/Rock happened at WM 18.

Daniel Bryan vs. World Heavyweight Champion (confirmed…we think)

Despite formally announcing his plans to cash in his Money in the Bank briefcase at WrestleMania 28 weeks after winning it in July, it looks very unlikely at this point that Daniel Bryan holds off from cashing in the briefcase. He’s already attempted to do it during one episode of Smackdown and won the title from Mark Henry until the result was overturned by Teddy Long due to Henry being injured. While he may not be headlining WrestleMania 28 in a World Heavyweight Championship match, it appears his career is going to be very bright come time for Miami.

The Miz vs. R-Truth

As of right now this looks like a match that could very well happen at WrestleMania 28. R-Truth is “injured” (suspended) until 2012 which can give them a pretty good shot at building this match up for WrestleMania. Leaving these two months without any type of physical altercation (like Sabu/Taz from ECW) can make people want to see this match, which is a classic buildup to any match, even two guys who you may not want to see wrestle in Miami…as of right now of course.

CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho

This potential matchup all rests on what will happen on January 2nd, 2012. Are the “ItBegins” promos for Chris Jericho or maybe another wrestler (i.e. The Undertaker)? If Jericho returns in January, which I believe he will, it will help build to a CM Punk/Chris Jericho WrestleMania title match that will make any wrestling fan very happy.

Mark Henry vs. Alberto Del Rio

Del Rio and Henry are two guys who have been great soldiers for the company for the most part of 2011 but can easily get lost in the shuffle the next couple of months (i.e. Wade Barrett 2010). The WWE wants to make Mark Henry a face again and I believe he can really fit the mold of a big time face pretty well and there is no better heel in the company that can help make that happen right now than Alberto Del Rio. Let’s be honest, if it wasn’t for ADR who knows if CM Punk would’ve been accepted by the entire “WWE Universe.”

The Undertaker vs. Triple H

They left WrestleMania 27 leaving a rematch between the two for a year later wide open. This is wrestling’s current “Super Bowl” matchup sans any dream matches (Cena/Rock, Lesnar/Austin, Austin/Punk) that would happen at a WrestleMania. Like I said before the “ItBegins” promos could also be for another wrestler, with some thinking it could be The Undertaker. A match between these two again is something fans want to see thanks to the great show they put on at WrestleMania 27 an even better buildup (something they didn’t have last year) could make this match an unforgettable one.

Kevin Nash vs. Big Show

It was teased last year after Nash was eliminated from the Royal Rumble and it didn’t happen which wrestling fans didn’t seem to mind. It looks like Nash is on the active roster for the foreseeable future which would put him in a slot for a WrestleMania 28 match this year as of right now. Nash vs. Big Show would be a good “special attraction matches” that we typically see at WrestleMania, it wouldn’t be the most technically sound match but it will do what it’s intended to do.

Dolph Ziggler vs. Zack Ryder

I’d love to see the WWE hold out for Zack Ryder’s petition for a United States Championship match until WrestleMania 28. Let the petition grow because at that point it could reach millions of “signatures” and make fans really want to get behind an “underdog” who is being held down by the “suits” of the WWE. Zack Ryder has a ton of appeal to the fans and they seem to really get behind him, a good build of this petition angle would be fun to see grow and conclude at the biggest event of the year.

Sheamus vs. Wade Barrett

To me this would be a great opportunity for a “passing the torch” match or a “these guys will be headlining WrestleMania’s for a while” match. Sheamus and Wade Barrett were looked at as future megastars at one point and are back as poised to be these stars yet again. Giving these two stars the WrestleMania spotlight can help define a future rivalry ala Austin/Rock because I believe they can have that same rivalry feel to it.

For more on this topic join Eric Gargiulo & myself for the Thursday December 15th edition of “The Still Real to Us Show” and download the show at www.wheelhouseradio.com and can be downloaded in the “Real Guy Radio” section of the site.

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Eric is the owner and editor-in-chief of the Camel Clutch Blog. Eric has worked in the pro wrestling industry since 1995 as a ring announcer in ECW and a commentator/host on television, PPV, and home video. Eric also hosted Pro Wrestling Radio on terrestrial radio from 1998-2009. Check out some of Eric's work on his IMDB bio and Wikipedia. Eric has an MBA from Temple University's Fox School of Business.

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